SEOUL, October 23 (Aalimi Nation) – South Korea on Friday formally proposed military talks with North Korea aimed at reducing tension along their heavily fortified border, saying that differing views on where the line lies raise the risk of accidental clashes.
South Korea's Ministry of National Defence said it wants the two sides to "mutually confirm" the exact location of the land Military Demarcation Line, restore military communication lines and agree on steps to prevent incidents in border areas. Kim Hong-cheol, the ministry's official for defence policy, announced the proposal.
What Seoul is asking for
Mr Kim said dates and venues could be arranged through Panmunjom, the truce village on the border. He said Seoul is open to including the US-led United Nations Command in the talks if needed, and added: "We look forward to a positive response from the North."
The official said troops on each side act on different understandings of where the border runs, which increases the risk of accidental clashes. He linked warning broadcasts and warning shots by South Korean troops to the uncertainty over the line's location. The ministry said it was difficult to predict what further incidents could occur if the situation were left unaddressed.
Background to the offer
Last month, three South Korean soldiers were injured in an explosion inside the Demilitarized Zone, south of the demarcation line, while clearing a patrol route. South Korea's defence ministry concluded that a North Korean land mine caused the blast, and the United Nations Command said it violated the 1953 armistice agreement. Seoul has demanded an apology. Pyongyang denies responsibility and says the South is to blame for rising tensions.
On Thursday, Seoul sent a letter to the president of the UN Security Council about the explosion.
South Korea made a similar proposal last November, focused on missing boundary markers dating from the armistice era. The ministry said North Korea did not respond.
North Korea's position
It is unclear whether Pyongyang will accept the new offer. Leader Kim Jong Un has taken a hardline approach towards Seoul and has suspended nearly all dialogue and cooperation in recent years. Since April 2024, the North has been strengthening its border defences under what it calls a "hostile two-state" policy.
On Wednesday, Kim Yo Jong, the North Korean leader's sister, said new military units had moved into "firing positions" along the border. She said mines, barbed-wire fences, tactical roads, anti-tank walls and other fortifications had also been added. She dismissed the idea of bilateral talks as "the climax of the farce".
Kim Yo Jong also said Pyongyang would resume propaganda loudspeaker broadcasts aimed at the South, claiming Seoul had falsely accused northern troops of crossing the border. Seoul said it would take a "proportionate measure" if the broadcasts resume, without saying what that would involve.
Seoul's wider approach
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung has called on the North to return to dialogue. There was no immediate response from North Korea to Friday's proposal.
